


The Difference between Kings and Princes, or What Kept You?

by gladsomemind



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-12-17
Updated: 2008-12-17
Packaged: 2018-05-21 11:58:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 863
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6050839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gladsomemind/pseuds/gladsomemind
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Missing scene. Sometimes, a prince can do what a king can not.</p><p>Old LJ Fic</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Difference between Kings and Princes, or What Kept You?

It had not been a good day for Arthur. He had been convinced that Uther would dispatch men to deal with the band threatening Ealdor. When his father had refused to help, all Arthur could do was watch the faces of Merlin and his mother fall, helpless as Morgana had lead the defeated woman from the audience chamber.

His final parting with Merlin had then left him with a surprising hole in his life, that even a week before he wouldn’t have imagined possible. Yet the fact that Merlin chose to go defend his mother and her home was not surprising at all. That Merlin clearly considered it _his_ home as well had hurt. The boy should consider Camelot to be his home. It was here he was appreciated and, well, it was here he should think of as his home.

Spending the rest of the morning shooting at stationary targets had been equally futile as he seemed to be quite incapable of compensating for the wind that seemed to be howling around the yard today. To round off the morning completely he now had his regular lunch with Uther and Morgana to look forward to. How he was supposed to face his father after this morning’s debacle Arthur wasn’t sure and it was only the presence of the servant that had stopped him forgoing his meal and taking his horse to go hunt now, rather than ordering it for the afternoon.

Surprisingly, when he got to the small chamber where they always met, Morgana was missing. With the arguments that had been going on recently between the King and his ward, it was unlike her to miss an opportunity where she could snipe away from the ears of the court. It did, however, give Arthur the opportunity to start the fight instead.

“How could you?”

Uther looked up from his plate and raised an eyebrow at his son. “How could I what?”

“That woman came to you for help. You just looked the other way and sent her to die!”

Carefully putting down his knife, Uther leant back in his chair and looked at his son. “You are no longer a child Arthur. Yet you seem incapable of learning those lessons that would make you a good king.” He paused. “What would you have had me do?”

The prince looked shocked. “Help them!”

Lacing his fingers together Uther looked on as the prince jumped up and started to pace around the room. “Let me ask you a question. A building is collapsing; you have to make a choice – to save one person or to save ten people. If you save the one the others die, if you save the ten only one dies. Who do you save?”

Nonplussed Arthur just shook his head. “You save the ten.”

Uther nodded. “Now expand that. If I had sent a dozen men to Ealdor, trained men, then yes they could probably have saved the village with only a small loss of life to our side. Two, three die and fifty are saved. The raiders would be gone but probably not all killed. 

“Cendred then retaliates for the army I have sent into his kingdom. The farms between the two countries are laid to waste. The people, those that survive the fighting are left to starve. With forces tied up to our East, the Kingdoms to the North and West attack sensing our distraction. Hundreds of innocent people die." 

Taking a drink from the goblet he met his son’s eyes without blinking. “I could not risk the lives of the people who look to me for protection to save those I am not bound to protect. This is Cendred’s battle and I cannot give aid without his knowledge.”

Arthur returned, deflated, to his stool. The silence stretched between them until the prince could stand it no longer and reached for a different topic of conversation. “Where’s Morgana?”

Uther smiled and chuckled to himself. “She came to me this morning for permission to go with her maid to help a friend. I believe they left a couple of hours ago.”

“But you just said…”

“Yes. As I said this morning, Camelot cannot help. That Morgana chooses to help a friend is not an invading army.” Looking once more at his son it seemed to Arthur that there was disappointment in his father’s eyes. “I am only surprised that you are still here.”

Finally recognising the words for the inherent permission they were, Arthur stood once more. “Excuse me father, I believe I should ride after Morgana. I understand that a friend is in trouble and would offer what assistance I can. When I have sorted it out, I will escort Morgana back.”

With a bow to his king Arthur turned to leave, pausing as his father addressed one more remark to his son. “Wipe the barbarian from the earth and come back. Safely.”

Arthur smiled and returned to his room. Gathering the things he had planned to take on the hunting trip, he left for the stables. The way Merlin rode he should easily be able to catch up with them as they camped for the night.

 


End file.
